Practical use of ERS-1 SAR images in pollution monitoring

Extensive near real time use was made of ERS-1 SAR images for pollution monitoring in Norwegian waters throughout 1993. This paper presents four rather different events which demonstrate the slick detection capability of ERS-1 under favourable wind conditions. The detected pollutants were: 1) A mixture of fish oil and diesel, 2) Run-off water from an open depository, 3) A controlled chemical spill, and 4) Drilling fluid from an oil rig. In all four cases direct action was taken to clarify the nature of the ERS-1 slick observations. However, no clean-up operations were required